GIRONDE GUIDE

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The Gironde is difficult to describe without using superlatives. It’s the largest department of France with a coastline forming part of Europe’s longest beach - the Cote d’Argent - stretching from the Gironde Estuary south to Biarritz in Pyrenees Atlantic. Climb Dune du Pilat, at over 100m Europe’s highest sand dune.

 

Most famously, the department of Gironde is home to the largest quality wine district in the world. The eight ‘appellations’ (highest classifications) include Medoc and Graves west of the mighty Gironde Estuary and River Garonne; St Emilion around the River Dordogne; and Entre Deux Mers- a vast area between the 2 rivers. It’s worth noting, ‘chateau’ here has come to mean ‘vineyard’ and not necessarily a palace as pretty as Chateau Margaux. Maison du Vin in Bordeaux is useful as you can check which estates are open to the public. Bordeaux port has been the hub of wine shipping since Roman times and the English love of claret can be traced back to England’s rule in Aquitaine during the Middle Ages. The city’s elegant eighteenth century façade reflects Bordeaux’s golden age. Enjoy its wine and jazz festivals, museums, ancient churches and Sunday market, or browse boutiques on reputedly the longest pedestrianised shopping street in Europe - rue Sainte-Catherine.

 

Away from the city, Atlantic surfing beaches like Lacanau, which holds world professional events and festivals, are a magnet for watersports enthusiasts. Behind pine fringed dunes shimmer freshwater lakes with child-friendly beaches and calmer waters ideal for sailing and windsurfing. The shores of Lakes Lacanau and Hourtin-Carcans - France’s longest freshwater lake - offer great stretches of wilderness and quieter holiday and fishing villages. Cycle, walk and horse ride over flat terrain in the pine-scented sea air. Take a boat to Cordouan Lighthouse, it’s listed and still has a lighthouse keeper. Sight migratory birds on Gironde estuary islands and Arguin Sandbank Nature Reserve, and discover wildlife trails in the nearby forests of Landes and the Regional Park of ‘Landes de Gascogne’. Arcachon Bay is the place for boat trips and fine seafood. Around its little towns and stylish Arcachon, the oyster is queen although restaurants do serve other shellfish.

 

Still looking for something to do in this climate so perfect for vines and visitors? What about a round of golf at one of Gironde’s picturesque 18-hole courses.

 

Bordeaux and St Michel Basilica

Bordeaux’s links across the Channel, forged mainly by the wine trade, were so strong during England’s 300 year rule in Aquitaine during the Middle Ages that it was rated England’s fourth city – after London, York and Winchester. Today’s visitors to the city, with its newly acquired World Heritage Site status, can take advantage of a modern tram system and pedestrianised centre to enjoy many finely renovated historic monuments. A trading centre – particularly for wine shipping – since Roman times, Bordeaux’s golden age is represented in the eighteenth century heart of its Quartier St Pierre with elegant arcades and facades and mansions of wealthy merchants – many of which now house antique shops. Visit the city’s excellent museums, shop in boutiques on rue Sainte Catherine and find quality produce at the Sunday market. Night life is vibrant and good restaurants abound. Indulge in succulent seafood from riverside stalls in summer. The Maison du Vin can help with information on the region’s wine including tours and festivals. Of Bordeaux’s 3 main churches, be sure to visit the huge St Michael Basilica close to the waterfront – its 114m free-standing Gothic belfry is the highest tower in South West France. Views from the terrace half way up are fantastic. For something extra special take a night time tour of the city’s most beautiful monuments under floodlight.

 

Blaye

Situated on the right bank of the Gironde Estuary, Blaye was an important stronghold in Gallo-Roman times and played a significant role in wars against the English. Visit the citadel built by Vauban in the seventeenth century, and relax in this pretty, hilly, beauty spot with commanding views over the Estuary. Maison du Vin des Premiers Cotes de Blaye is the place to learn about the local wines – less expensive than those from the newer and more famous vineyards of the Medoc across the water. There are wine-tastings at the citadel on 15 and 16 March. March is also the time Blaye’s first asparagus, “Reine Blanche du Blayais”, appears in local markets. Weekly markets at Blaye at the harbour are on Wednesday and Saturday.

 

St-Emilion

Regarded by many as the prettiest town of Gironde’s principle wine districts, the Romans were planting vines around St-Emilion in 2AD. This small, fortified, medieval town, classified as a World Heritage Site, has picturesque limestone houses, imposing ruins and a wealth of religious architecture lining its steep, narrow streets. Most impressive is the eleventh century Monolithic Church carved into a limestone cliff. Each June, the local red-robed wine council meets in the church to ceremoniously evaluate the previous season’s wine and decides on AOC status. Tombstones in the catacombs beneath the belfry include that of eighth century hermit monk St-Emilion whose followers first began commercial wine production here. Church visits daily by guided tour only. Ask at the Maison du Vin for organised vineyard tours (May to Sept) and lists of vineyards open to the public. St-Emilion’s many wine shops will no doubt prove tempting but do leave time to seek out the town’s other speciality – tiny macaroon biscuits made to a seventeenth century recipe.

 

Arcachon

One of the Gironde’s oldest seaside towns set on the 100km coastline of the bay of the same name, Arcachon is only 40 minutes by train from Bordeaux and a firm favourite with French families. The Ville d’Ete, or “Summer Town”, has wonderful beaches for swimming, sunbathing and watersports, pretty seafront promenade, playgrounds, boutique shopping and plenty of seafood restaurants – huge fresh oysters a speciality. Take a boat to Cap Ferret or the fabulous sandbank nature reserve of Banc d’Aguin off the coast. Arcachon’s exclusive Ville d’Hiver or “Winter Town” just south of the “Summer Town” offers a totally different vista. Set on a wooded hillside, the “Second Empire” holiday villas built at the end of the nineteenth century with the coming of the railway, provide a feast for the eye with their wealth of elaborate brickwork, flamboyant balconies and stained glass. With something for everyone – including 2 great golf courses nearby – this resort, yacht haven and fishing port, attracts crowds in high season but becomes sleepy and relaxed as winter approaches.

 

Gironde Estuary

The Gironde, at over 75km long and 12km wide in places, is Europe’s largest estuary. Formed where the mighty Dordogne and Garonne rivers meet at Bourg, it’s a waterway with strong tidal currents and sandbanks demanding skilful navigation by shipping of all sizes. Over the centuries, the Gironde Estuary has been a route to the Atlantic for commodities on which the port of Bordeaux has built its prosperity, from sugar to wine. Along its banks grow some of the world’s most prestigious vineyards. Vines even grow on the Ile de Patiras and Ile Margaux which form part of a series of privately owned islands within the estuary. Another island houses a seventeenth century fort whilst others provide stopping off places for hundreds of migratory birds. Cross the estuary on the Larmarque to Blaye ferry or take the car ferry from Pointe de Grave at its mouth to Royan. From Royan a boat operates May to September taking visitors to Cordouan Lighthouse, a beautiful listed building built in 1584 and France’s oldest working lighthouse, which stands guard out at sea over the mouth of this great estuary.

 

Arcachon Bay

This tidal bay with approximately 100km of coastline is renowned for its boating and oysters. All round the bay are beautiful beaches, little fishing and holiday villages, campsites, dunes and pine forests. Visit Gujan Mestras close to Arcachon to see oyster farming. Follow the port signs to 7 little inlets with wooden workshop cabins which don’t appear to have changed in 100 years. Children will love Gujan Mestras’s Aquacity water park and museum of model ships. Nearby La Hume is the summer home to dozens of craft workers. Watersports enthusiasts can enjoy diving, sea-kayaking, windsurfing and boating and on land there are quality walking and cycle trails for exploring the woodland areas. The Bay is also a fabulous place for bird-watching if you avoid June to September (too many visitors). Boats from Arcachon take you to Bird Island and Teich Ornithological Park – an important wetland site at the eastern end of the Bay (open daily 10am – 6pm) to see spoonbills blue throat and black kites along with nesting storks.

 

Cote d’Argent

200km of silver sand where Atlantic rollers, white with foam, crash on beautiful beaches backed by dunes and forests, stretching south from the Gironde Estuary to stylish Biarritz in the Pyrenees Atlantiques. The lack of coastal roads north from Arcachon Bay leaves huge areas wild and un-crowded while other Atlantic beaches are a magnet for watersports enthusiasts. Surfing is popular from Le Verdon to Cap Ferret, the most well known resorts being Carcans Hourtin – which has surf schools – and Lacanau where world professional events are held. Behind pine-fringed dunes the lakes of Lacanau and Hourtin-Carcans offer child-friendly beaches and calmer waters ideal for swimming, sailing and windsurfing. Discover quiet holiday and fishing villages linked by wildernesses ideal for cycling, walking and horse riding. The popular resort of Arcachon with its tidal bay and family friendly beaches is a magnet for oyster lovers. 12 km further south, the highest sand dune in Europe, Dune du Pilat, rises over 100m. Steep as a ski jump, climb stairs to the top for fantastic views over the Atlantic, Arcachon Bay and forests of the Landes – wonderful at sunrise and sunset. This 2700m long sand mountain is constantly re-sculpted by wind and tide and is a favorite with sand-boarders and paragliders.

 

The cuisine of Gironde has no trouble matching the top quality of its regional Bordeaux wines from some of the world’s best vineyards. For starters, how about oysters from the Bay of Arcachon with a crisp dry white Graves, foie gras with a good Sauternes, or the season’s first asparagus from Blaye with just a little French dressing? Gironde’s long Atlantic coastline, and 100km shoreline of the Bay of Arcachon, make it hardly surprising seafood figures prominently on most menus. Choose between shrimps from the Gironde Estuary, king prawns from the Medoc (almost 50% of France’s total supply comes from here), grilled sea bass or a local speciality “anguilles a la medocaine” – eels cooked with prunes in wine. Have fun oyster-tasting “degustation” in the “cabanes” of picturesque fishing villages such as L’Herbe and Piraillan on the Cap Ferret Peninsula. The locasl sometimes steam them over beds of pine needles! If you tire of fish, there’s tender Pauillac lamb marinated in red wine and herbs, “entrecote marchand de vin” – rib steak in a rich Bordeaux wine gravy – and grilled spiced wood pigeon in season. Local patisseries everywhere stock the little Bordeaux cakes known as “caneles”. Crunchy outside and moist within with a hint of rum, there’s nothing better with your coffee.

 

Bordeaux Wine Trail to Visit the Area’s Celebrated Wine Produce

A good starting point for wine lovers would be the Bordeaux wine festival to be held in 2008 from 26 – 29 July. The 12 hectare site in the centre of the world’s largest quality wine district offers thousands of French and foreign wine lovers the opportunity to taste a wide selection of wines from the Aquitaine region. Prefer to tour the vineyards? – visit the Bordeaux Maison du Vin for information on estates which are open to the public (some even offer meals) to sample in situ such quality classics as St-Emilion from around the River Dordogne, Graves and Medoc from west of the Gironde Estuary, and Entre Deux Mers from between the rivers Dordogne and Garonne. Members of “Vignobles & Chaisin Bordeaux” are local producers who offer guided tours and assisted tastings. The D2 “route du vin” winds past many wine villages of the Medoc. But remember, some chateaux such as the beautiful Chateau Margaux or the illustrious Chateau Mouton Rothschild can only be visited by appointment. Local Maisons des Vins give more specific information – St-Emilion for example organises wine-tasting lessons and bilingual tours from May to September and Blaye has wine-tastings at its citadel on March 15 and 16 2008.

 

Surfing, Lacanau

The 14km of golden sandy beaches at Lacanau-Ocean make this delightful resort deservedly popular for all lovers of watersports, particularly surfers, who come to enjoy some of Europe’s finest beach breaks. Part of the World Surfing Championships and wave skiing competitions have been held here for the last 20 years. See professionals on 7 – 17 August 2008 competing in the Lacanau Pro Surf Contest. Beaches have waves for all levels and resort surf schools include SurfPlus and Lacanau Surf Club with its “wave gardens” for 5 to 10 year olds. Four beaches are supervised mid-May to mid-September and 2 have a “tiralo” beach wheelchair which allows disabled swimmers access. The resort has good surf shops, bars and “après-surf” and can be busy in high season.

 

Cycling

Cycling is popular throughout France and the department of Gironde, where much of the countryside is relatively flat, is well provided with mountain bike tracks. Maison du Tourisme et du Vin in Pauillac hires bikes and can suggest vineyard routes, whilst the coast from Pointe de Grave to Cap Ferret has 141km of dedicated trail. Saveterre-de-Guyenne to Bordeaux (55km) makes use of a disused railway line. Pick up the route halfway at Creon, where equipment can be hired. Arcachon Bay and Gironde’s huge lagoons offer great cycling routes between sandy beaches and pine forests. Look for otters, deer and tortoises along the forest trails around Etange de Cousseau where cars are banned. France’s longest freshwater lake, Hourtin-Carcans, has wonderfully secluded cycle tracks between the lake and the ocean with plenty of picturesque picnic spots. Most main towns have bike hire shops. Find maps on www.uk.tourisme-gironde.cg33.fr/cdt_piste_cyclable.asp

 

Canoeing/Kayaking

Canoeing and kayaking are great alternative ways to view a landscape which has so many lakes and rivers. The Bay of Arcachon is a safe place to try sea kayaking using longer and narrower kayaks. (Only venture out into the open sea along this coast accompanied by a qualified instructor). For most, Gironde’s rivers offer plenty of opportunities. The canoeing centre at Belin-Beliet, in the “Landes de Gascone” Regional Park has guided trips down the River Leyre – known as the “Little Amazon” – to Arcachon Bay, and the canoe school at Villandraut organises trips to explore the beautiful Ciron Valley. The Rivers Dordogne and l’Isle near St-Emilion are also great for canoeing and kayaking as are Gironde’s many coastal lakes. Find out about equipment hire at local tourist offices.

 

Carcans-Maubuisson, Mini J Regatta 25 to 30 August 2008

For sailing enthusiasts, Mini J championship, organised by Bordeaux’s Cercle de Voile. Takes place on Hourtin-Carcans’s fabulous lake – the largest freshwater lake in France.

For more information contact: (00 33) 5 56 03 30 19.

 

Gujan-Mestras, Oyster Festival, August 2008

Arcachon Bay oysters are particularly sumptuous and are celebrated at the annual oyster festival.

 

Pauillac, Medoc Chateaux Marathon, 6 September 2008

One of the most scenic marathons imaginable. However, if taking part is not your thing, then join the many thousands of spectators and enjoy the festivities.

 

Please check precise details and dates with event organisers before making your holiday and travel arrangements.

 

Copyright: Holiday France Direct 2008